I stumbled upon this classic Italian dessert recipe while perusing through the Huffington Post. My mom’s name was Louise and more often than not was called Louisa by her family and close friends; hence the pull for me to read on.
I can’t describe this cake any better than the Huffington Post, “It’s airy and light, but not without integrity: ricotta, eggs and plenty of butter give it richness, grated apple lends heft, and lemon zest rescues it from being at all bland.”
This cake is truly wonderful.
-MBK
Louisa’s Cake
Servings 6
Ingredients
- 9 Tbsp. Butter at room temperature
- 1 cup sugar + 2 tbsp
- 3 large eggs at room temperature
- 1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 pinch salt
- 1 cup whole milk ricotta
- zest of one lemon
- 1 Tbsp. baking powder
- 1 large apple grated
- confectioners sugar for serving
Instructions
- Pre-heat the oven to 400. Butter and flour a 9 or 10-inch spring form pan. If you don’t have a spring form pan, prep a 9″ round cake pan. Cream the butter and sugar in a standing mixer until light and fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time beating well after each addition. Stir in the flour, salt and baking power, gently mixing until you don’t see any dry ingredients. Stir in the lemon zest, ricotta and grated apple. Pour batter into prepared pan and bake for 25 – 30 minutes or until the cake is golden brown and the sides start to just pull away from the pan. Cool on a wire rack for 10 minutes. Turn cake out and cool competely. Sift powder sugar over top and serve. This cake pairs beautifully with fresh berries and whipped cream or lemon curd.